Before she discovered the carnivore diet, Theresa’s body suffered immensely. Theresa was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease at 17 years old; she even had bowel surgery as a young adult. Before discovering a healthier way of eating, Theresa ate the Standard American Diet. Her doctor put her on multiple medications for Crohn’s disease. However, she found the medicines would work for a while and then stop working for her.
Her life changed twelve years ago when she attended a Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF) seminar. WAPF is a non-profit organization dedicated to “restoring nutrient-dense foods to the American diet through education, research, and activism.” She learned through the seminar that eliminating highly processed foods like grains, dairy, and sugar could improve her health. For approximately two to three years, Theresa followed the diet recommended by the foundation. She ate mainly meat, vegetables, and fruit and immediately noticed a difference in her health. Though many of her symptoms improved and she could stop taking medications, she was still experiencing some symptoms from her Crohn’s disease.
After ten years of following the WAPF diet, Theresa’s doctor suggested eliminating fruit since it still has high sugar and carbs. Once she stopped eating fruit, Theresa says she felt 90% cured but still wondered if she could experience complete relief. She began researching and stumbled across Dr. Shawn Baker on Facebook. Theresa started to dive head-first into researching the carnivore diet as much as possible. She credits listening to Dr. Baker’s podcast and reading his book “The Carnivore Diet” as her primary source of education. Though Theresa had eliminated many inflammatory foods from her diet, she was still holding on to vegetables. Once she eliminated vegetables from her diet and focused on eating meat, she experienced complete relief.
Theresa has now been following the carnivore diet for approximately eighteen months. Theresa explains that the carnivore diet has changed her life more than expected. She went into the diet purely because of her Crohn’s disease but found it also helped her lose sixty pounds, eliminate eczema, and gave her energy and strength she didn’t know she had. Theresa now exercises 30 minutes a day. She states she only does cardio, but her arms have an impressive amount of muscle which she attributes to the carnivore way of eating.
A typical day for Theresa includes enjoying two meals consisting of beef, chicken, fish, or sometimes pork. Theresa also says she eats eggs with every meal and has found beef works best for her body. She shares that she doesn’t crave sugary foods or feels tempted when friends and family ask her if she wants to eat something like cake. She knows she will never go back to her previous way of eating.
Theresa loves how simple the carnivore diet is and how much time it has freed up for her since most recipes contain one ingredient. Theresa says she would love to help others on their carnivore journey. Her advice to anyone looking to start the carnivore way of eating is, “You have nothing to lose… it’s worth a shot.”
